Debt Prevents Lawyer From Being Admitted To Bar

This is the kind of article that would have sent chills down my spine even a few months ago: The fact that a lawyer has too much debt may be grounds for being denied admission to the bar. I have struggled with debt for years. I have carried "toxic debt" around longer than I care to admit. I used to have late payments out the wazoo. It never occurred to me when I entered law school that debt could ruin my plans of becoming a lawyer. It was only into my third or fourth year that this possibility stared me in the face. And I dreaded the character and fitness application process for this reason. And in my character and fitness interview, the subject of my debt came up. And the lawyer interviewing me did wince, when he saw the total. But he noticed that I had made payment arrangements and was caught up on everything. What I didn't tell him, and should have, is that I also cut up all my credit cards and haven't used credit in several years. That would have helped my case. But in the long run, I didn't need help. He recommended that I be admitted and I was. The scary part of this article is that the New York bar examiners did approve this man to be admitted to the bar, and a panel of judges reversed the decision.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/02/business/02lawyer.html

One Year Plan To Buying A House

Since I am wanting to buy a house, and wanting to do so within a year or two, the article below caught my attention. It gives a lot of good tips about making a gameplan to buy a house within one year. It offers a timeline of what to do when, which is what Ineed. I am not sure I can pay off my debt as fast as they suggest. I am hoping to pick up some freelance work so I can pay my debt off faster.

http://realestate.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=13107796

Debt And Nothing To Show For It

I found this sad story today on MSNBC, about a woman who has more that $60,000 in debt and nothing to show for it. I can commiserate--I didn't have that much debt, but it was still too much. And I didn't feel like I had a lot to show for it. Friends and family never would have thought I was extravagant, but I spent a little too much money here, a little too much there, and didn't have much to show for it. Glad that period of my life is over. But it is so easy to do.

Increase Your Chances At Passing The Bar Exam: Use Law Decks!

My recommendation for a great bar exam study aid that won't break the bank is Law Decks. It is a set of flash cards color coded to the six MBE subjects: con law, contracts, criminal, property, evidence, and torts. They are very easy to carry around, unlike the hefty bar review books. so you can study anywhere anytime. I put a handful in my purse everyday and found a quiet place to go through a few at a time. I was amazed at how much I learned. I felt it was easier to retain the law from the cards than the BarBri or PMBR questions. If you want a quick and dirty review, or to cement the legal principles in your head, I would suggest Law Decks. It worked for me!

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I Have Been Better At Maintaining Checking Account

Me, the non sufficient funds princess, has been on a roll of having a positive balance and not overdrawing my checking account. That is pretty special, considering how often I have done that in the past. I guess since I have passed the bar exam, I now actually have time to keep up with how much money I have in checking account, how many checks I have written, and making those two amounts reconcile. This makes me very happy and has saved me much money. (holds breath hoping I don't overdraw tonight. I don't see how I can, but my balance is cutting it close. Sometimes those forgotten charges pop up and cause disaster. A forgotten about renewable match.com charge almost did that to me a couple of weeks ago.)

Getting Better Mystery Shops Now

I have been mystery shopping for almost a year, and I am pleased with my progress. For the last couple of weeks, I have been getting some really good paying shops. By good pay, I mean $35-$60 apiece. That is really good. This includes a bank shop, four apartment shops, and a new housing shop. I have another new housing shop coming up this Friday. Most of the shops I have been taking in the past have paid between $10-$20. They have been interesting, but by the time you enter the form, the pay rate is very low. Even at $35-$60, the pay rate still may be low, but it is much better. I need to supplement my income by at least several hundred dollars a month, and this has been a real solution for me. Plus the assignment are often fun.

Eavesdropping On Compliance Test Prep

I am sitting in a coffeehouse, reading the paper and playing on the internet, and I am overhearing someone prep someone for a server compliance test. A server who serves alcohol to someone underage gets into huge trouble.

This is interesting to me, because as a mystery shopper, I see compliance shop opportunities all the time. I have actually done one myself. Sitting at the bar, and ordering a drink and dinner, I had to observe whether the bartenders asked everyone for their IDs. Some shops, which I can't do, require you to be young enough that they ask you for your ID, and if they don't, you put that in your report. Some restaurants fire servers right away for not complying. Apparently, servers have to take some kind of test about this. Not sure why you have to take a test--seems like it would suffice just to tell them they have to ask for ID, but I guess the training and passing the test in helpful in some way.